


dear granger

by catlituaniaa



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Angst, Bittersweet Ending, Death Eater - Freeform, Eventual Happy Ending, F/F, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Hogwarts, Hurt/Comfort, Love Letters, M/M, Mental Breakdown, Reader is a Death Eater, Romantic Angst, Second War with Voldemort, wlw
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-12
Updated: 2021-02-22
Packaged: 2021-03-12 14:01:39
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 7
Words: 10,378
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29385984
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/catlituaniaa/pseuds/catlituaniaa
Summary: (hermione x fem!reader)A misunderstanding between two girls in love drives a wedge in between their relationship. It’s only when it’s too late when they realize that they should have cherished every single moment they had with each other.  They thought they did that with their letters, didn’t they?  It still wasn’t enough.
Relationships: Hermione Granger/Reader, Terry Boot/Theodore Nott, Theodore Nott/Reader
Kudos: 10





	1. 1 ; it shouldn't have ended this way

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: The characters and some of the events in this story do not belong to me. They belong to J.K. Rowling, who I am not. 
> 
> The main character, you, is a Ravenclaw in this story. I'm sorry to my Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, and Slytherin readers.
> 
> There will be trigger and content warnings before anything that is possibly triggering occurs. If I miss anything, please let me know and I will include a warning.
> 
> ALSO:
> 
> yes, I am reposting this story here from wattpad. recently, wattpad has decided to remove some of my *favorite* stories and I'm absolutely terrified that i'll lose this one. 
> 
> this is the same story from wattpad, "dear granger" by @catlituaniaa.
> 
> \---
> 
> Enjoy the story :)

chapter one

letter #53

dear hermione,

i don't know if you'll be alive to read this letter. i don't know if i'll be alive to even finish this letter. i'm so sorry for any harm that i caused you and your friends. i tried to help you escape. i saw her throw a knife in your direction. i hope it missed. i'm terribly sorry if this letter sounds choppy. i'm hiding from her right now. she knows that i helped you guys escape. like i said earlier, i might be dead before you see me again.

i know that over the years we've had our fair share of people who didn't approve of our relationship. "girls shouldn't be dating!" well, we've proven them wrong many times, haven't we? i have enjoyed every single moment i spent with you, from comforting you in the bathroom before the troll to spending nights in the astronomy tower. you made my miserable moments tolerable. you showed the sun to me when all i could see was the void.

no one else will know the love I have for you. the past few years have been unbelievable. I am deeply sorry for everything that has to happen, for I cannot control it. a funny thing control is, isn't it? everyone tries to gain as much control as they can. I advise you to try to gain as much control as YOU can throughout this next year. you'll need it.  
  
  


i love you,

-b


	2. 2 ; here comes the sun

The train whistled and steam came out from it. Parents of students wave goodbye to their children, both excited and sad that they're leaving for school. Students frantically hurry onto the train, not wanting to be late. We see two muggles, making sure that their daughter has all of her materials. She has brown, curly hair that shoots out in all different directions. The excited look on her face shows that she obviously doesn't care about her hair.

"Bye mum! Bye dad!" she yells as she gets onto the train. Other students are seen doing the same before the silhouettes of their parents disappear into the distance. A new year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry has begun.

When on the train, the girl bumps into another, causing them both to drop their belongings. "I'll get it! I'm so sorry," they said at the same time. After helping each other get everything situated, they laughed it off and shook hands.

"I'm Hermione. Hermione Granger."

"Hi Hermione. I'm Y/N."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hi :) a quick note: chapters will increase in length as the book goes on.  
> also: updates are very random, as I am still in school. I try my best to get at least one chapter out a week, though.  
> thanks for reading!


	3. 3 ; one breath in

Hermione Granger walked off of the train with her new friend, (Y/N).

 _"It's my first friend! My first magical friend!"_ Hermione thought to herself.

Hermione was loud, talkative. She was excited to have someone to talk to about everything she learned over the summer. Magic was far more facinating than maths and science. Her parents were quite welcoming to the magical world. Well, as welcoming as they could be. They were confused at first. How could their daughter be a witch? How could there be a whole other world out there, concealed by a few words known as spells? 

Hermione told (Y/N) about this the entire train ride to Hogwarts. (Y/N) was facinated with how her parents reacted. Her entire life has been surrounded by magic. Her parents' reaction to her getting her acceptance letter was nothing extraordinary. They got the letter, clapped for a bit, then went on with their day. 

As soon as they got inside the castle, Hermione stopped talking. She had read about the architecture of the castle; however, no words could capture the beauty and essence that Hogwarts emits. The walls _felt_ magical. The first step felt magical. The energy that bounced off of the walls and the floors was enough to keep one up at night.

One breath in.

One breath out.

They were home.

They knew it as soon as they climbed the stairs. They knew it as soon as the portraits welcomed them. They knew it as soon as Professor McGonagall told them about the houses. (Y/N) hoped that her and Hermione would be put in the same house.

We hear the sound of annoying eleven year old boys bickering. Hermione paid no attention to them. She was focusing on the beauty of the castle. She was focusing on the beauty of the girl standing next to her-

Wait.

She surely didn't already have a crush on her friend. They just met! They're also both girls. No, that's completely insane. Hermione reminded herself that she shouldn't get too attached to everyone that's nice to her.

Someone is being nice to her.

For the first time, she has someone that she can call her friend. She'll acknowledge her strange feelings later, possibly when they're both much older. For now, she'll focus on the fact that she's finally in a place where she's not considered as "strange". Everyone here does magic. Everyone here could easily be called "freak." She was just as different as everyone else.

As Hermione walked up to the stool to get sorted, (Y/N) flashed her a smile and mouthed, "good luck!"

"GRYFFINDOR!" the Sorting Hat exclaimed. Everyone in the table second to the left stood up and clapped. They were all wearing black robes with scarlet accents.

"(Y/N) (L/N)," Professor McGonagall called out. It was (Y/N)'s turn to be sorted.

She prayed to be put in Gryffindor, but she understood if she was put in another house. Her parents were Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw. She valued traits similar to theirs.

One breath in.

One breath out.

She calmed herself down before sitting down on the stool.

After sitting on her head for a few seconds, the Sorting Hat yelled, "RAVENCLAW!" The table closest to the left stood up in cheers. (Y/N) smiled, excitedly going over to the house where one of her parents grew up in. As she sat down, she made eye contact with Hermione. Her eyes were sad. Being in different houses didn't mean they had to stop being friends, right? They could still talk on the weekends or between classes.

In her dormitory after the feast, Hermione grabbed a quill and some parchment. She dipped her quill in some ink and started writing.

_Dear (Y/N)..._


	4. 4 ; one breath out

(Y/N)'s owl brought her Hermione's letter at breakfast two days later.

_Dear (Y/N),_

_I know it might be too soon to start writing letters, but I cannot contain my excitement! Hogwarts truly is a beautiful place. Thank you for being my first friend here. My schedule says that I have Charms, Flying Lessons, Transfiguration, and Potions with Ravenclaw tomorrow (September 2nd). I'm excited to see you then!_

_Sincerely_ ,

_Hermione Jean Granger_

(Y/N) looked for Hermione at the Gryffindor table. Once she found her, she gave her a warm smile and waved her letter for Hermione to see. The letter came late, but (Y/N) enjoyed it, anyways. To their delight, the two of them were seated next to each other in Transfiguration and Potions. The other person's presence made Professor Snape's ridiculously strict classes bearable. Professor McGonagall enjoyed having two bright girls sit up at the very front of the class in Transfiguration.

This one boy, Draco Malfoy, tried to become friends with (Y/N) one day in Potions. Apparently, he has a big thing with Purebloods sticking together in "these hard times with Mudbloods parading the Wizarding World". (Y/N) told him to bugger off, of course. Her parents never encouraged blood supremacy. They taught (Y/N) that "a magical person is magical, no matter the blood" when she was younger, and she's stuck by that ever since. Meeting Hermione helped with that statement. Hermione was the best in their year. It didn't matter that her parents were muggles. She was still brilliant.

After about a few weeks of being at Hogwarts, Hermione and (Y/N) became extremely close friends, despite being in different houses. These two boys, Ron Weasley and Harry Potter, also started hanging out with Hermione a bit. Ron disliked her, though. He thought that she was too stuck up, too loud. 

"Just ignore him, 'Mione. He doesn't know what he's saying," (Y/N) told Hermione on Halloween in the bathroom, after they overheard Ron talking poorly about Hermione. 

"He's right, though, isn't he? I'm loud, and I'm annoying," Hermione replied, wiping away a few tears.

"I don't think you're either of those things. You shouldn't let idiots like him dictate how you feel about yourself." (Y/N) takes Hermione's hand and rubs it. Hermione smiles a bit, starting to laugh. 

"Thank you, (Y/N). You're an amazing friend, you know that?" (Y/N) laughs, shaking her head.

"I try my best."

After a few seconds of silence, a loud thumping noise comes from outside the bathroom. The two girls jump and look at each other. "What was that?" Hermione asks, her voice shaking.

"I-I'm sure it was nothing. Should we go back to the-" (Y/N)'s sentence was interrupted by a large troll storming into the bathroom, with a club the size of a human in hand. He groans and yells loudly, seeing the two girls. He aims his club towards them, destroying the bathroom stall. Hermione screams, diving out of the way. She pulls (Y/N)'s hand with her. 

Just then, Ron and Harry come into the bathroom, wands in hand. They start yelling at each other, confused about what to do. Hermione gestures to Ron to perform the Levitating Charm on the troll's club. Ron listens, waving his wand and saying the incantation, "Wingardium Leviosa!"

The entire event goes by like a blur. Hermione lies to the teachers, saying that she was the one who looked for the troll. This action is what causes Ron to gain more respect for Hermione. Professor McGonagall leads Ron, Harry, and Hermione to the Gryffindor common room, while Professor Flitwick leads (Y/N) to the Ravenclaw common room. 

Laying in her bed, (Y/N) decides to write to Hermione. Maybe this could be their thing, writing letters. She jumps out of bed excitedly, reaching for her quill and some parchment. She dips her quill in some ink and starts writing.

_Hermione,_

_I do hope you're doing alright. The troll incident was quite an interesting one. I have to ask, why did you take the blame for the troll? It wasn't really any of our faults. I'm sure you have a brilliant "Gryffindor-esque" answer. Yes, I realize that I'll be able to ask you this the next time we see each other, but I think that writing letters could be our.. thing. I don't know. The girls in my dorm all have their "things"._

_Just in case Weasley continues to talk poorly about you, just know that I think you're wonderful. He'll be able to see that soon. If he doesn't, who cares? You're perfect just the way you are, and you don't have to change yourself just to fit in. We're all freaks here. We're literally in a school for magic. Embrace it._

_See you later,_

_(Y/N)_

She folds up the letter, putting it into an envelope to bring to the Owlery. 

The next morning at breakfast, Hermione receives the letter. She smiles, knowing who it's probably from. She opens up the envelope excitedly, skimming through the words quickly. She looks at to the Ravenclaw table to see (Y/N) watching her read the letter. They make eye contact, causing (Y/N) to blush in embarassment. Hermione laughs and shakes her head, placing the letter back into the envelope. Ron looks over curiously, waving a piece of bread in Hermione's face. She rolls her eyes and continues to eat, already excited about the day and classes that await.


	5. 5 ; in the moonlight

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TRIGGER WARNING: A SMALL SECTION MENTIONS HOMOPHOBIA AND NAME CALLING. THERE WILL BE A WARNING BEFORE THE SECTION AND SOMETHING TO INDICATE THAT THE SECTION IS OVER.

Throughout their first and second years, (Y/N) and Hermione continued to write letters to each other, even if they could just talk to each other the next day. (Y/N) had a red box to keep the letters in, and Hermione had a dark blue box. They normally wrote to each other about 3 times a month, so the box got full very quickly.

Malfoy and (Y/N) got kind of close, too. They were... friends? They helped each other with certain assignments, and they tolerated each other. You could even say that they joked around with each other, often.

But he ruined it, in second year.

(Y/N) is a Chaser on the Ravenclaw Quidditch Team, so they were out on the field practicing. Gryffindor was scheduled to practice after them, so (Y/N) wasn't surprised to see the team and some of their friends walk onto the field. She _was_ , however, surprised to see the Slytherin Quidditch team walk in behind them. They weren't scheduled to practice today.

(Y/N) flew to the ground, wiping the sweat off of her forehead with a towel. She walked up to Hermione, who was talking to Ron on the side. "Hey, what's going on? I didn't think-" (Y/N) started, stopping when Hermione opened her mouth to speak.

"You were thinking right. Slytherin claims that they have practice today, but it's not on the schedule," Hermione explains.

(Y/N) nods, turning to look at the players in red and green. It looked like Christmas. Except without the cheerfulness.

"Malfoy?" she hears a Gryffindor, probably Harry, say.

At the sound of his name, she turns with a confused look on her face. Malfoy explains that he was the new Slytherin Seeker and that the entire Slytherin team had new brooms. Oliver Wood looked like he was slightly constipated while trying to not look jealous.

She snaps out of her odd thoughts at the sound of Hermione's voice. "At least no one on the Gryffindor team had to buy their way in. They got in with pure talent," she proudly states. (Y/N) smiles at her, showing her appreciation for how brave she is.

Malfoy steps forward with a smirk on his face. "No one asked for your opinion. You filthy little mudblood," he sneers at Hermione. At these words, everyone falls silent. (Y/N) stares in shock, fumbling for her wand. Ron gets to Malfoy first, trying to make him eat slugs. Ron had unfortunately broken his wand before the school year started, so the spell didn't go exactly as planned. Malfoy was supposed to throw up slugs while Ron and the rest of Gryffindor laughs. To their dismay, Ron was the one throwing up slugs, and Malfoy was laughing.

As Hermione and Harry got Ron to Hagrid's to get better, (Y/N) turned to Malfoy with a bitter expression on her face, ready to explode.

"You know better than to throw around words like that, Malfoy," she snaps, putting her hands on her hips.

Malfoy rolls his eyes, stepping towards her. "I'm disappointed that you've gotten so used to Granger, (Y/L/N). You could say that you're a blood trai-"

"Don't finish that sentence." (Y/N) scoffs, picking up her broom from the ground. "Good luck with your Transfiguration essay. You won't be getting anymore help from me." She turns and walks out of the field to the locker rooms.

Later that day, (Y/N) met up with Hermione to study for a Defense Against the Dark Arts test. Granted, it wasn't really a test on anything they were supposed to be learning. It was another test on Gilderoy Lockhart, their teacher, and his "accomplishments". (Y/N) walks into the library, looking for Hermione. When she heard footsteps, Hermione turned around and smiled. The sight of her best friend calmed her down. She closes her book and walks up to (Y/N). (Y/N) shared the smile and hugged Hermione quickly.

"Are you okay? Malfoy-" she closed her mouth again when Hermione opened her mouth to speak. She's learned quite a bit about Hermione's body language over the past year and a half.

"He's an insufferable idiot who only spends his time bothering other people. Don't waste your energy on him," Hermione says quickly, opening her book again. (Y/N) nods, understanding that Hermione didn't want to talk about it. She takes her books out of her bag and places them on the desk, sitting in a chair.

The two of them understood each other's habits and manners. For example, Hermione fidgeted with her hair when she was nervous. (Y/N) dug her nails into the tips of her other fingers when she got mad. It was easier for the two of them to hang around each other when they understood the other person so well.

\----

By their third year, they were closer than almost any other friend group in school. Yes, Hermione had Ron and Harry, but she was definitely closer to (Y/N). They understood each others' intellect. They both had a drive for school that no one else understood. They were also never true rivals when it came to grades. When Hermione gets a higher grade, (Y/N) is probably only a few points behind her. The same goes for when (Y/N) gets a higher grade. In class, they send each other glares when the other person answers correctly. They're definitely joking about it, though. Internally, the both of them were congratulating the other. They won't ever admit it out loud, however.

If you didn't know that they were actually best friends, you would think that they hated each other.

You would be wrong. They definitely did _not_ hate each other.

——

(Y/N) came out as someone who likes girls at the end of 2nd year, right after Hermione and all of the other muggleborns got out of the hospital. She didn't know her exact sexuality, but she knew that she didn't just like guys.

She wasn't exactly met with acceptance from everyone.

**\---------TW: HOMOPHOBIA---------**

Apparently, some wizarding families uphold conservative muggle values. Not all families, of course. Her parents were confused, but they promised to try their best.

Her classmates, however, didn't promise anything.

She got howlers every other day during breakfast; to which she brought to the bathroom, cast a silencing charm, and let the howler screech. The howlers always consisted of the same few words, _"disgusting, unnatural, shameful,"_ and many others. Most would say that she was too young to know if she was gay or not. (Y/N) personally thought that that made absolutely no sense. It didn't matter if she was 12, or 2, or 21, or 201. She knew that she liked girls.

There was a point where the howler would mouth something, but nothing came out. Maybe the magic censors some words if they're too offensive.

(Y/N) knew that this would be the type of reaction she was going to get. Yet, she still got upset. Why did they have such a big problem with her liking girls? She wasn't hurting anyone.

Hermione comforted her through it all. She held her hand while the howler yelled obscenities in her face. The truth was, Hermione was the one who cast the silencing charm. Hermione was the one who wiped away (Y/N)'s tears that she refused to acknowledge. Hermione was the one who was always there.

**\-----------------------------**

Hermione ignored the feelings that she felt back in first year with (Y/N). She thought that they were ridiculous, and that (Y/N) was just a friend. Besides, why would (Y/N) like _her?_ She was bossy, annoying, and her best friend. Best friends don't develop feelings for their best friend.

(Y/N), on the other hand, knew that she was developing a crush on Hermione. She was.. okay with it? She didn't know. Hermione seemed as straight as a board. She didn't really seem like someone who would like her back. (Y/N) didn't want to make her uncomfortable. Their friendship was something rare; only a few people are lucky enough to have something like what they had. She didn't want to ruin it.

"...in the Astronomy Tower tonight, (Y/N)?" Hermione's voice snapped (Y/N) out of her train of thought. She cracks her neck and turns to look at Hermione. They're surrounded by books; Madam Pince is reshelving books about two columns away.

"Sorry. I didn't catch that," (Y/N) admits. Hermione chuckles a bit before clearing her throat.

"I asked if you wanted to meet up in the Astronomy Tower tonight. After curfew?" Hermione smiles, trying not to flinch at the foreign words. The words "meet up after curfew" weren't really in Hermione's vocabulary. (Y/N) laughs, turning her head away to hide the small blush that was creeping onto her cheeks.

"Hermione Jean Granger. Are you suggesting that we sneak out? What on earth could have possibly caused this miracle to happen?" (Y/N) looks at the girl in front of her teasingly.

Hermione sighs and looks at (Y/N) with a serious look on her face. "Those howlers look like they've really been getting to you, (Y/N)."

(Y/N) stares at Hermione before laughing and shaking her head. "I'm okay, 'Mione. I promise."

Hermione furrows her brows, frustrated. "You need this, (Y/N). You've been stressed with school, and the howlers add to it," her expression relaxes and she lets her face show a small smirk, "This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. I will never sneak out of curfew again after this."

"You snuck out at eleven years old in order to get an immortal rock away from You-Know-Who," (Y/N) reminds her. Hermione shakes her head and laughs. "Fine. I'll come. On one condition," (Y/N) looks at Hermione as she speaks. "You bring those Muggle stereo things that you have in your dorm. Muggle music is significantly better than Wizarding music."

At this, Hermione can't contain her smile. She jumps up from her seat excitedly. "Of course, I'll bring them!"

"We won't get caught, right? I'd hate to lose anymore points from Ravenclaw ever since the Potions inciden-"

"(Y/N). We're probably the most paranoid people about school rules. We won't get caught. Promise," Hermione assures her. (Y/N) sighs in relief, laughing a bit.

——  
That night, Hermione waited for (Y/N) to get there 30 minutes earlier than she should have been. She had snuck through the Fat Lady's portrait, making sure that no Prefects could see her. She's never snuck out on her own after curfew before, so this was a new experience.

(Y/N) arrived 15 minutes after Hermione, not shocked at all that the other witch was there much earlier than she was. "Sorry if I was keeping you waiting," she apologizes. Hermione shakes her head and turns to put a record on the record player.

"I wasn't waiting that long. It allowed me to.. collect my thoughts," Hermione says while turning back to (Y/N).

"Ah, yes. All of those thoughts in that brilliant mind of yours," (Y/N) playfully says. Hermione blushes a bit, turning away again to hide it.

"Hm. Must be talking about yourself, then. My, my, (Y/L/N). Gotten cocky over the past three years, haven't we?" Hermione replies, raising her eyebrows playfully at (Y/N). (Y/N) laughs, shaking her head. The song playing on the record harmonizes with her laugh. Hermione looks at her, confused. "I didn't know you were a singer, too, (Y/N)," she jokes. "What other secrets are you keeping from me?"

_I have a crush on you, Hermione._

No, she couldn't say that, obviously. She shrugged, humming along to the music. "Didn't know I was a singer, either." She starts singing along, purposefully going out of tune. Hermione laughs, grabbing (Y/N)'s hand to dance.

"May I have this dance, milady?" (Y/N) asks in a posh accent.

"Yes, you may," Hermione replies, her cheeks growing red. (Y/N) laughs again, pulling Hermione and her arms along with the music. 

They continued dancing for another two hours, with a bit of a break in between each song. After they both admitted to being too tired, they grabbed a blanket and sat on the edge of the tower, admiring the view.

(Y/N) was looking at Hermione. She was looking at how her hair messily stood in a braid, attempting to tame the wild mane Hermione carried on her head. She was looking at how her skin glowed in the light of the moon and the stars. She was looking at how her eyes lit up when something beautiful flew across the sky. She was looking at Hermione, who was the beautiful thing in front of her.

(Y/N) reluctantly turned her head away. Hermione glanced at her and noticed that she wasn't looking at her. She never looked back up to the sky. She only kept looking at the witch in front of her, who was now talking about some discovery she made in her Arithmancy class. She smiles, continuing to focus on every little, beautiful, detail about (Y/N).

Neither of them knew that they were looking at each other in the same way.


	6. 6 ; nott too bad

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TRIGGER WARNING: the f-slur is almost said by someone who's not part of the LGBTQIA+ community.

The Astronomy Tower became (Y/N) and Hermione's "place".

It was the "place" of many other coupl- friend groups, as well, but the two of them liked to think that it was their own.

They went there every Friday, right after their last class. Thankfully, their last class ended at 3:30PM, so they had a lot of time before they had to head to the Great Hall for dinner. They didn't do anything grand when they went. They just talked. And danced. (Y/N) even sings a bit, every now and then. Apparently, she really _can_ sing. Hermione was baffled when she found out this piece of information.

(Y/N) started keeping her song ideas in the same red box that she keeps Hermione's letters in.

Her happy box.

The howlers starting stopping a few months after the school year started. It definitely took a load off of her shoulders. There were many people, like Luna Lovegood, who stuck by her throughout it all. Luna, bless her, couldn't hate anyone even if she wanted to. She managed to see the good in everyone and everything. Despite being a year younger, (Y/N) looked up to her quite a bit.

Luna came up to her one day in the courtyard, a book in hand. She was reading it upside down, but she didn't seem to mind. "Hello, (Y/N)," Luna says with a smile.

(Y/N) turns, smiling. "Hello, Luna. How are you doing?"

"I'm quite well. None of my shoes have gone missing," Luna says contentedly. (Y/N) shakes her head.

"You should really do something about that. I would be quite upset if people kept taking and hiding my shoes," (Y/N) says.

"It's alright. I know that they're having fun. That's what matters, right?" Luna closes her book and looks at (Y/N). "You seem distressed. Has a Slytherin gone up to you yet? The wrackspurts around you are all green," Luna says worriedly. 

(Y/N) blinks and stutters out, "Uh, not that I know of? Why, should I be looking out for one?"

Luna shakes her head, "No. I looked at the wrackspurts wrong. This Slytherin will make you quite happy, (Y/N)," she explains. 

(Y/N)'s mouth falls open a bit. "What?"

Luna smiles, waves, and walks away slowly. (Y/N) furrows her brows together, trying to figure out what on earth she means. 

Harry, Ron, and Hermione walk up to her, holding parchment and books. Harry was in front of Ron and Hermione, with Hermione and Ron's arms interlocked. (Y/N) notices, not realizing that she has a distressed look on her face. Hermione was ranting about something that happened in her Ancient Runes class until she saw the look on (Y/N)'s face. "Hey, (Y/N). You alright?" Hermione asks calmly.

(Y/N) blinks and nods slowly. "Luna just told me to look out for a Slytherin, and that the Slytherin will 'make me quite happy,'" she explains. Hermione turns her head sharply.

"What does she mean by that?" Hermione questions.

(Y/N) shrugs, turning to look at Malfoy's "friend group" that just walked into the courtyard. Theodore Nott, Pansy Parkinson, Vincent Crabbe, and Gregory Goyle all walked behind Malfoy, like they were his bodyguards.

"Well, there's a bunch of Slytherins right there," Ron says, rolling his eyes.

Malfoy and his "friends" see them and decide to walk over, probably to start trouble. Malfoy has a smug look on his face, while Crabbe and Goyle try to copy it. They don't look very intimidating.

"Well, well, well. What do we have here? The Golden Trio and (Y/L/N). Not surprised to see Weasley and Granger all cozied up with each other. The blood-traitor and the mudblood," Malfoy sneers.

Hermione and Ron stiffen, obviously uncomfortable with what Malfoy said. They separate their arms. 

(Y/N) rolls her eyes, trying not to react too much. Trying not to look jealous. "Look here guys, Malfoy's too busy focusing on other people to notice that we _don't_ care," (Y/N) snaps back.

"Jealous, (Y/L/N)? You have a crush on Granger, don't you? With you being a fa-" Goyle spits out.

Before he could finish his sentence, Hermione had already drawn her hand back into a fist, ready to let it collide with Goyle's face. (Y/N)'s eyes widen and she grabs Hermione's hand softly.

"Don't bother, 'Mione. He's not worth it. Don't waste your energy," (Y/N) insisted. Hermione reluctantly relaxes her fist, not letting her sharp expression waver.

Parkinson puts her hands on her hips. "Looks like the Gryffindor's not so brave now. Your girlfriend makes you soft, doesn't she?" (Y/N) awkardly shifts from one foot to another, not wanting to know how Hermione reacted to that.

Theodore Nott rolls his eyes and starts to walk away.

"Where you going, Nott?" Malfoy shouts. Nott turns around, hands in his pockets.

"I'm mature enough to walk away from situations that will end badly," Nott explains, saluting Malfoy as he walks out of the courtyard. (Y/N) notices that Harry and Ron decided to follow his lead, slowly walking in the other direction. Parkinson huffs and pulls Malfoy away.

Crabbe and Goyle seemed to be in a different world, so they didn't see that the rest of the group left them for a few seconds. The two of them ran off in two different directions, not knowing where to go.

"And then there were two," (Y/N) laughs. 

Hermione chuckles, shaking her head. "That was an.. interesting interaction, don't you think?"

"It was random, definitely. They just needed to mind their own business," (Y/N) starts walking back to the castle, grabbing Hermione's hand to pull her with her.

"Why did Parkinson call you my girlfriend? It's because we hold hands and do couple things, isn't it?" Hermione asks.

(Y/N)'s expression flickers for a moment, undecipherable. She lets go of Hermione's hand. "I don't know, 'Mione. Don't all friends hold hands?" Her eyebrows furrow as she presses her lips into a line. "I"m going to eat lunch in my dorm."

"Do you want me to come with you? We can eat in the library inste-"

"No. It's fine. You go ahead. Go eat with Harry and Ron," (Y/N) smiles tightly. Hermione nods and turns to walk in the other direction, to the Great Hall.

(Y/N) sighs with her eyes closed, straightening out her robes with her hands. She bites her lip to bite back the thoughts that have surfaced in her mind. To drown them.

_She doesn't like you back._

_She'll never like you back._

_You're not good enough for her._

She takes a big breath in, letting it out slowly. She shouldn't feed the awful thoughts by acknowledging them. Ignorin-

"Ignoring the thoughts will make it worse, (Y/L/N)," a voice from behind her remarked.

(Y/N) turns around sharply to see the person who invaded her thought process.

Theodore Nott.

She rolls her eyes, stepping towards him. "And what would you know about that?" She raises her eyebrow at him, to which he mirrors with his own eyebrow.

"I, too, have gone through the pain of having to ignore the things my brain tells me." Nott takes a book out of his bag. "Deep breaths? Been there, done that. Closing your eyes to keep out the world? Yup." He drops the book into (Y/N)'s hands.

(Y/N) blinks. "What?"

"Occlumency. Pretty useful, if I do say so myself. I'm still learning, but I think you'll benefi-"

"Why are _you_ telling _me_ this, Nott?" (Y/N) inspects the book, reading the title and summary.

_Occlumency: A Beginner's Guide_

"Just helping a fellow student in need. Slytherins _can_ be nice, you know." Nott leans against the wall with a smirk on his face.

"Where and when did you start learni-"

"Read the book. Pick a technique. I'll answer your questions if you come to Scrivenshaft's Quill Shop with me next Saturday." Nott starts to walk away.

"Like.. a date?"

"Sure, if that's what'll help you sleep at night," he snickers. He turns around to salute her, just like he did with Malfoy. He turns back around to turn the corner, leaving (Y/N) in the empty hallway.

(Y/N) shakes her head slowly, trying to make sense of everything that's happened today.

Nothing Luna could've said would have prepared (Y/N) for the Slytherin that approached her.

\--------------

She read the book. Many times, actually. Occlumency was actually quite interesting. Suppressing her emotions wasn't really something she was keen on, but it wasn't permanent. It certainly helped with her crush on Hermione. She knew it would never lead to anywhere. She knew that Hermione would be uncomfortable if she ever found out about her crush.

The book told her to meditate. And meditate. And meditate. Whenever she could, she had to meditate. Clearing the mind and focusing was crucial if she wanted to do any of the techniques shown in the book. She meditated in the mornings when she woke up, after lunch, and again before she went to bed. She even tried to do it while she was studying with Hermione. She concentrated on only her breathing and on one word while meditating. The word varied from time to time; most of the time it related to magic.

She tried very hard to not make the word "Hermione".

By the end of the week, exactly one week before her "date" with Nott, she decided to practice the visualization exercises given in the book. She started out with an empty room, with only a few trinkets on the floor. She would go over to pick one up, inspect it, then put it in a different area. Then, she would repeat this with the other trinkets. Remembering where she put the objects was slightly difficult for her. She wanted, and needed, to remember the exact spot. It didn't appear automatically when she she started the visualization process.

It took her three days to get the hang of remembering where she put the objects. She was, to be quite honest, exhausted. She forgot to take breaks in order to conserve her energy. She took a break for two days.

After her break, she decided that she was ready to start making things in her mind. She needed to practice creating things whilst she was in the room. It was easy to create the room in her mind with the objects already there, but it was a small challenge to actually create more objects while she was in the room.

She started with small pieces of paper. Then she started writing things on the paper. They were small words, with little significance. Then, she went on to bigger pieces of paper with words that connected to her emotionally. Once she got the hang of that, she played with pushing some of the pieces of paper to the corners of the room, and the others to the middle of the room. 

One day before her "date", she chose an Occlumency method. She wasn't really going to start with it yet; she wanted Nott's approval of the method first before she committed to it. She also wanted a few more weeks of practice with visualization. Rushing wouldn't benefit her at all. 

She questioned why Nott wanted to go on this date with her. It distracted her while she was meditating. Nott wasn't like Crabbe and Goyle in Malfoy's friend group. He, along with Blaise Zabini, acted as if they were better than Malfoy. They avoided conflict, but that doesn't neccessarily make them _better_ than him. They still wore the same smirk on their face, with their chins raised and eyebrows lifted. 

(Y/N) even thought for a time that he was gay.

She didn't want to assume, of course. Plus, he was obviously not gay, he asked her out on a date. He could be bisexual, maybe. But this doesn't answer the question, "why?" She wasn't particularly interesting. She had the howlers in the beginning of the year. She was in quidditch. Otherwise, not much attention is thrown her way, especially with Nott. She sat in front of him in History of Magic, next to Terry Boot, and she would occasionally see him in the library. She didn't see him much outside of class, unless he was with Malfoy.

She really didn't know why he would ask her out. She decided to just figure it out on the day of the date.

Which was today.

Where had the time gone? It seemed like it was only yesterday when he handed her the Occlumency book.

She quickly packs her bag, which only contained the book, her wand, and a few other things. On her way out of the Ravenclaw common room, Luna comes up to her, skipping.

"Hello, (Y/N). Has that Slytherin gone up to you yet? How did that go?" Luna straightens out her skirt.

(Y/N) smiles at her. "Yeah, he went up to me the day you told me about it. We're- uh- going on a date today, actually." 

"Oh, lovely! Have fun with that, won't you?" Luna smiles at her once more before walking in the other direction.

(Y/N) chuckles and heads out to the school's entrance, where all of the third years meet up to leave to Hogsmeade. Where were her and Nott supposed to meet up, anyway? He didn't really give her many details, other than the location. She spots him in the croud of third years and approaches him.

"Nott," she says, startling him.

Nott jumps, whipping his head around to see her. "Merlin's beard, (Y/L/N)! You can't just go up to a bloke and scare him."

"Sorry." She starts walking next to him, towards the village and towards Scrivenshaft's Quill Shop. They exchanged small talk, mostly about classes. He seemed to be extra interested in History of Magic.

"Who's the person who sits next to you, again? Boots?" he asks as they enter the shop.

(Y/N) laughs, shaking her head. "Terry _Boot_. A singlular boot." She waves hello to the shopkeeper and goes towards the back, where the tables are. "Why?"

"No reason. Just curious," Nott says quickly. He changes the subject. "How was the Occlumency book? Interesting, right?"

"Very. It's actually harder than I thought it would be. Memorization isn't one of my strong suits." She sighs and leans against the table.

Nott nods, looking around the shop. "Which method did you choose?"

"I'm going to mix two methods, the song one and the box one. I like writing songs and singing, so I thought that writing songs about my memories would make it enjoyable. But I didn't like the idea of ripping up the sheet music and mixing them with other ripped up songs, so I decided on the box. It's easy, and it makes sense," she explains. He nods again, pondering her words.

"Those are two very good methods. Nice job." He picks up a stack of parchment awkwardly.

"Why'd we come here, again? I didn't think a stationary store would be your preferred first date place."

"Honestly? I didn't really think you'd come. Especially since I hinted at it being a date. With you dating Granger-"

"Woah, woah, woah. Pause there. We're not dating," she furrows her brows, "We're just friends."

Nott raises his eyebrows slightly, skeptical. "You sure?"

"Positive."

"Alright."

They spent a few minutes in silence, inspecting the suddenly interesting stacks of parchment. "Would you like to go to Honeydukes?" (Y/N) asks suddenly. Nott's eyes brighten a bit at the idea.

"Thought you'd never ask."

They headed out of the shop empty, on the way to Honeydukes. They passed by Ron and Hermione, whose arms were interlocked again. Hermione didn't tell (Y/N) about this.

Did she need to?

(Y/N) shoved that thought down for later. Her walking falters a bit as she waves at Hermione and Ron. Ron was obviously judging her date choice. 

Nott starts walking slightly faster, to avoid conflict. (Y/N) follows him into Honeydukes as he opens the door for her. "M'lady," he says, saluting her again. She rolls her eyes.

They spend about an hour and a half at Honeydukes. The playful atmosphere of the sweets shop contrasted the serious energy of the stationary store. It made it a lot easier to actually converse. The two of them had a lot in common. Nott enjoys playing the piano, while (Y/N) enjoys singing. They both like the same kind of sweets. Their favorite quidditch team is the Holly Head Harpies. Even though Nott doesn't love the idea of flying on a broom, he enjoys watching the games. He even complimented (Y/N) as a Chaser.

Nott shared some advice when it came to Occlumency. There were some obvious ones, like "don't get distracted", but there were others that didn't seem as obvious at first. He told her about putting hexes and jinxes on the lock of the box that she uses. With the song method, he told her to make the songs about less important memories "uninteresting". That way, she won't dwell on them a lot since they're boring.

"I had a lot of fun today, Nott," (Y/N) says as they walk towards the entrance to Hogwarts.

Nott smiles at her. "Me too. You're not too bad. Maybe we could do this again sometime? You could show me your singing skills." He raises his eyebrows playfully.

She laughs, "Sure. Maybe you could play a bit of piano for me."

"Anything for you, (Y/L/N)."

She rolls her eyes, sighing. "And maybe we could _actually_ call each other by our names. First names, I mean."

He thinks for a moment. "That's not a bad idea."

"I know."

"Shut up."

They both laugh as they wave and walk away from each other.

"Bye, Theo."

"Bye, (Y/N)."


	7. 7 ; have yourself a merry little christmas

"Did you hear? (Y/L/N) and Nott are dating now, apparently," Malfoy said to his friends two weeks after (Y/N) and Theo went to Hogsmeade together for the first time.

Harry, Ron, and Hermione were all listening, of course. Because who doesn't love eavesdropping on their rivals as a pasttime?

"I can't believe _he_ got a girlfriend before any of us. Before _me_." Malfoy pouts. He turns around to find Harry, Ron, and Hermione leaning attentively in their direction. "What do you lot want?"

The three of them stumble backwards. "Nothing," Harry says quickly.

Malfoy and his friends laugh, strutting towards them. "Jealous, Granger? You and (Y/L/N) broke up?"

Hermione's eyes widen in panic. "What? No- we were- We were never dating! She has _every_ right to date _whomever_ she wants. I'm just- how could we possibly have boyfriends and girlfriends _now_? We're all so youn-"

"What's going on here?" (Y/N) walks up to them, Occlumency book in hand. She's started to read more on the topic, with her personal library mostly consiting of books on Occlumency. "Malfoy." She nods at him. "What are you doing?"

"Just talking to your ex-girlfriend. She's jealou-"

"I am _not_ jealous! Like I said, she can date whomever she wants!" Hermione huffs and walks away quickly.

Harry and Ron awkwardly wave goodbye to (Y/N) as they follow her.

(Y/N) turns to glare at Malfoy.

"Malfoy."

"That's me."

"You can't just-"

Malfoy puts up his hand in front of her face. "I'm happy for you. You finally got over her and now you're dating someone who's almost as good as me."

(Y/N) scoffs. "I never had to get over her in the first place," she says defensively. "I'm happy with Theo. But we're not dating. We're waiting until fourth year to officially say that we're a couple." Malfoy takes his hand down and steps away from her.

"Why?"

She rolls her eyes. "Because we're thirteen. We both agree that we're not emotionally mature enough to commit to-"

"To each other? Let me guess, you want someone else and so does he? I'm not blind, (Y/L/N). I know you like Granger. And Nott doesn't seem the type to swing that way-" He smirks as (Y/N)'s eyes widen.

"Then you clearly don't know either of us as well as you thought you did."

Theo walks up to them and wraps his arm around (Y/N)'s shoulder. "Hey guys. Didn't realize there was a party here."

(Y/N)'s expression relaxes slightly. "The party's over, then." She ducks under Theo's arm and walks away, in the same direction Hermione went in.

She treads along the hallway slowly, trying to find Hermione again. The curly-haired witch was sitting in an empty classroom, fumbling with a golden chain on her neck. 

"'Mione? Are you okay?" (Y/N) approaches her slowly.

Hermione snaps her head around and shoves the golden chain into her shirt. "Yes. Perfectly. You?"

(Y/N) nods, "Yes, of course." She looks around them awkwardly. "Did I do something wrong?" she asks bluntly.

Hermione hesitates for a moment. If (Y/N) weren't looking so intently, she might have missed it. "No, of course not. I've just.. been going through a lot," Hermione clarifies.

After a few seconds of looking at each other, (Y/N)'s face softens. "You know I'll always be here for you, right? Even if we _have_ gotten a bit- er- distant lately." (Y/N) takes Hermione's hand in hers, the same way that they used to.

"Thank you," Hermione says, almost in a whisper. 

\----------

Theodore Nott was very curious about Terrence Boot.

Or, Terry, as most people called him.

"Hey, (Y/N)," Theo says as he walks up to his desk behind (Y/N) in History of Magic.

(Y/N) waves at him, sitting next to Terry and opening her bag.

Terry looks up at the two of them. "Are you two really dating?"

Theo raises his eyebrow at him, like he always does when someone interrupts his conversation with someone. "I guess you could say that. We don't think we're mature enough for a real relationship, but yeah." He leans against the desk. "What's it to you?"

"Nothing. I just don't think that it's logical to say you're in a relationship without even calling it a relationship." He turns back to his desk, unfazed. "Just trying to look out for your.. reputation. You certainly have an interesting one of those," Terry taunted.

Theo scoffs as (Y/N) awkwardly opens her book to a random page. She was barely focusing on the words, but she could vaguely remember seeing the words "died from embarassment".

"Then maybe you should stick to your own relationships. As far as I know, we're doing the mature thing."

"Alright."

Terry's lack of a response causes Theo to look at (Y/N), baffled. She looks up from her book and gestures to just ignore him.

The rest of the class was spent with Professor Binns falling asleep in between almost every single sentence. At one point, the class was debating on whether or not they should wake him up.

Theo obviously wanted to continue his conversation with Terry, but he didn't give him any sort of reaction when Theo attempted to glare daggers into the back of his head.

After the class finally ended, Professor Binns was still asleep. (Y/N) goes over to his desk and lightly tries to wake him up. After he shoots up, suddenly awake, she smiles at him and goes over to Theo. Terry gets up and pats Theo on the back.

"Listen, I'm happy for you, I guess. She's a good person." He gestures towards (Y/N). "Maybe she can help you become one, too." He walks out of the classroom, leaving Theo and his dropped jaw.

"...Did I hear that right?" (Y/N) blinks.

Theo pauses for a moment before clearing his throat. "No matter. It's irrelavent, right?" He smiles at her and links their arms together, dragging them out of the classroom. "We're working on boggarts today in DADA, right? Lupin mentioned it a while ago, right?" He changes the subject again.

He has a habit of doing that when they talk about Terry.

"Yup. I don't know how I feel about it. Harry's boggart a few months ago really caused a fright." (Y/N) turns the corner, in the direction of the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom. "At least today's the last day before Christmas break, right? Exams are done."

"Ah, yes. Thank you, Professor Lupin, for not letting us stress over two things at once. I only have to stress out over facing my biggest fear. Thank goodness we're done with exams," he says sarcastically.

A tall figure appears behind them. "No problem, Mr. Nott. That's my job as a teacher."

The two students turn around quickly. (Y/N)'s eyes widen. "Professor Lupin! Er- hello! Theo here was just-"

Professor Lupin chuckles. "It's alright. You're the first two here, so you'll be able to get yours over with quickly."

Theo rolls his eyes, walking into the room. "That definitely helps a lot, thanks."

Students slowly fill the room. (Y/N) looks around. She spots a head full of brown curls and her heart skips a few beats. Shaking her head, she turns back to the front of the classroom.

"Gooood morning, students! As you know, we'll be working with boggarts today. We looked at them a bit a few months ago, but I wanted this to be the last lesson you have before Christmas break." Lupin walks over to a closet in the middle of the room and taps his wand against it. "Now, do we remember the incantation? I hope so, it was on your final exam."

On cue, the students all exclaimed, "Riddikulus!"

(Y/N) heard Draco Malfoy mutter, "This class is ridiculous."

"Now, Theodore Nott here has happily volunteered to go first. Let's give a round of applause for Mr. Nott here, everyone." Lupin gestures for Theo to come forward. Theo scowls at Malfoy and his friend group, who started whistling and stomping their feet.

Lupin opens the door to the closet and a man, most likely in his late 20s or early 30s, walks out. Upon further inspection, the man has the same dark, curly hair as the thirteen year old boy standing in front of him. He was short, especially compared to Lupin. 

The man was Theo's father.

He saunters over to Theo, pulling up his left sleeve. A tattoo of a skull with a snake coming out of it was brandished on his left forearm. Theo staggers back, his wand arm falling a bit.

"Remember the incantation, Theodore," Lupin reminds him.

Theo lifts his wand and points it at the boggart. "Riddikulus!" The tattoo on Theo's father turns into colorful strings that wrap around his body. His hair turns into a bright pink and the strings slowly dissolve into his body, covering him in clown makeup. The entire classroom erupts in laughter.

Lupin pats Theo on the back and gestures (Y/N) to come forward. "Well done, well done! Alright, (Y/N), you're up!"

Theo slowly walks to the back of the line that was formed, a distant look on his face. He was clearly shaken up from seeing his father.

She walks up to the boggart, wand in hand. Was she ready for this, especially after seeing Theo's reaction to his boggart? 

No, most definitely not.

Ha, "not" and "nott".

The boggart shuffles its form. Once it finally chooses, the room's light is suddenly whisked away. Multiple figures shuffle forward. She could make out a few of them, with the one in the very middle having very curly hair. It starts yelling at her with Hermione's voice.

"Traitor!"

"You were _never_ really my friend!"

The rest of the figures start yelling, some of them even pointing and trying to go closer to her.

It was like the howlers. Except worse. 

(Y/N) falls back. She feels someone catch her.

She tries to Occlude, shoving the remarks and derogatory words into the back of her mind, and putting them into a separate box for her to burn later. As the figures continue to repeat the same things over and over, they start creeping back to the front of her mind. She tries to put a lock on the box, attempting to summon a safe enough flame to burn them right now.

She's brought out of her mind when she feels Boggart Hermione shake her, yelling in her face.

Murmurs come out of the mouths of the students. She could make out vague "is she okay?" and "this was a stupid idea".

Hermione steps in front of her, making Boggart Hermione focus on her instead. The boggart turns into McGonagall, who tells Hermione that she failed.

(Y/N) brings herself up, picking up her wand that somehow fell to the floor. She excuses herself, hearing a small "Riddikulus!" before running out of the classroom.

She squeezes her hands to her ears, pressing her nails into the tips of her other fingers. Running into the bathroom, she hears another set of footsteps approaching her.

"(Y/N)? (Y/N)!" Hermione runs up to her, wand in hand. (Y/N) shoves her away, falling to the floor and trying to hold back her sobs. "(Y/N), it's me. _Breathe_." Hermione mutters a silencing charm on the room.

(Y/N) tries to calm her breathing but fails. Sobs fall out her throat. Tears fall from her face onto the bathroom floor.

"None of those things are true, do you hear me?" Hermione's eyes were looking between each of (Y/N)'s eyes, worried. "(Y/N), look at me."

"I'm sorry- for not being there when you needed me to be. You were going through stuff and I wasn't there." (Y/N) sniffles as Hermione hands her a tissue.

Hermione waves her wand and banishes the dried tears on (Y/N)'s face. "No. You did nothing wrong. I should've been honest with you. I wasn't actuall-"

(Y/N)'s arms wrapped around Hermione's body, quieting her words. She spent the next few minutes crying.

"You have gone through so much this year. I am so, so proud of you. The Hermione that the boggart tried to replicate? She doesn't exist." Hermione brings (Y/N)'s chin up to look at her.

After a few seconds of silence, (Y/N) whispers, "Thank you."

\---------------

Christmas came quickly. Harry, Ron, and Hermione decided to stay at Hogwarts. Theo and (Y/N), too.

Theo met up with (Y/N) early into the day, to exchange gifts. They were in the Great Hall, which was practically empty.

"I think my gift is pretty good, so I have very high expectations for your gift, (Y/N)," Theo jokes.

(Y/N) rolls her eyes. "I think you'll really like your gift."

"Really? I'll be the judge of that." He grabs the small box from her hand, ripping open the wrapping paper.

She gasps, staring at the ripped up wrapping paper. "I worked so hard on that! How could you just.. rip it?!"

"You don't rip it? What's the point of wrapping presents, then?"

She gapes at him, refusing to respond. He finally finishes opening the present to find a charm bracelet. He reads it, smirking when he finishes.

_THE MATURE ONE_

"Ah, yes. Is this from when Malfoy and his lot tried to piss you off?" He smiles as he tries on the bracelet.

"Yes, it is. I remember you saying, 'I'm mature enough to walk away from situations that will end badly.'"

He chuckles. "It's true, isn't it? Alright, open up your gift." He hands her a box, similar in size to hers.

She opens it up slowly, careful not to rip the paper. He rolls his eyes.

Inside the box, there was a necklace. The one charm on the necklace was an orb. Inside of the orb, there was a small piece of parchment. She could barely make out the words, "always will be." on the parchment.

"...'Always will be'? What does that mean?" She looks up from the necklace to see Theo pulling a necklace identical to hers out of his shirt.

"Mine says, 'I'm here.'"

"Yes, of course you're here. Who else would I be talking to?"

He looks at her, eyebrow raised, before continuing, "No, connect the words. 'I'm here, always will be.'"

She takes a few seconds to think. "Oh, I get it now."

"Merlin, I thought you were a Ravenclaw. Isn't that supposed to be the smart house?"

She shoves him playfully. "Shut it."

"Do you like your necklace?"

She smiles at him, looking at the parchment inside the orb again. "Yes. Very much."

"I'll always be here. No matter where we are in the future, I'll always be here for you."

"Thank you, Theo."

He looks at his bracelet again. "You think I'm mature?"

She laughs and raises her eyebrow at him. He mirrors it again. "No. Not at all. I just put that there to fuel your ego."

He rolls his eyes again, walking away from her. "See you later, (Y/N)."

Laughing again, she turns to go to the Gryffindor table, where the Golden Trio was eating breakfast and exchanging presents.

"Heeeeello, boys. Hey, 'Mione." (Y/N) plops down next to Hermione and grabs a piece of bread from Ron's plate.

"Hey, (Y/N)." Harry smiles, ignoring Ron's pout and his attempt to take back the bread.

"Your presents," she nods at Harry and Ron, "are in the common room. I asked Hermione to hide them around the room."

The two boys groan. Ron, with a piece of bacon in his mouth, complains, "But that's too much work. Why couldn't you-"

"Sorry about him, (Y/N). He didn't get much sleep last night." Hermione smiles at her, rolling her eyes.

(Y/N) nods and smiles. "Here's your gift, 'Mione." She takes out a small bag and hands it to Hermione.

Hermione, thankfully, opens the bag without ripping it. She smiles gratefully when she sees that it's a bookmark.

"Oh, thank you, (Y/N)! I've been needing a new bookmark for a while, Ron took my old one. How strange is that? He barely even reads!"

"That's not all. Press the button," (Y/N) grinned.

Hermione presses the button. A voice, (Y/N)'s voice, comes out of the bookmark. It's humming Clair de Lune.

Hermione gasps and looks between the bookmark and the Ravenclaw sitting next to her. "How did you- how did you even think of this?"

Ron chimes in, "She's a Ravenclaw, isn't she? That's the creative house."

(Y/N) beams, nodding and mentally thanking Ron.

"It's brilliant, (Y/N), thank you."

(Y/N) scoffs. "I'm sure your gift is even better. You know me better than anyone else."

Hermione rolls her eyes and takes out a large box from under the table. "It's not much, but-"

"'Not much'? _'Not much'?_ What on earth?" (Y/N) looks at Harry and Ron, who just shrugged. Harry had a smirk on his face, suggesting he knew what the gift was already.

(Y/N) opens the gift, carefully. Inside the box, there were multiple small records and a mini record player.

"You really enjoyed the muggle records I bring to the Astronomy Tower, so I found a way to make them smaller, along with a record player. Now, you can listen to them whenever you want." Hermione takes a deep breath, preparing for (Y/N)'s response.

(Y/N) stares at the box, eyes gleaming with happiness. "I- I don't even know what to say. This is amazing, Hermione. Thank you so much."

Hermione watches as (Y/N) fumbles with the record player, asking Harry and Ron for help. Ron helped only a bit, seeing as he didn't really know much about Muggle objects. Harry helped the most, but he had a bit of trouble manuevering the tiny record player.

Hermione's eyes were drawn to the glowing smile on (Y/N)'s face. Her breath was held as she listened to the records, completely baffled at the fact that music was coming out of the small box. Hermione watched as Harry and (Y/N) quickly replaced the record when the song was finished. She watched as (Y/N) laughs in astonishment when the record player plays the new song, as if it had no memory of the other song.

A realization dawned on Hermione as (Y/N) replaced the song again.

She had a crush on (Y/N).

She didn't just have a crush on her, she had a _crush_ on her.

It wasn't like the crushes that the girls in her dorm had on boys. She wasn't just attracted to her looks. She was also attracted to her mannerisms, and the small things she did when she was happy.

She was attracted to _her_.

But she couldn't be, right? (Y/N)'s dating Nott. They're not really dating, because of the whole maturity thing, but they kind of are.

The fact that (Y/N)'s "dating" someone doesn't simmer Hermione's crush on her.

She doesn't know how to feel about that.


End file.
